Google acquires AR eye wearable startup North

San Francisco, July 1 (IANS) Google which gave up on its consumer eye wearable dream has acquired Augmented Reality (AR) smart glass startup called North for an undisclosed sum.

Canada-based North that is backed by Amazon and Intel launched the Focals 1.0 AR glasses in January last year.

These glasses connect to the user's smartphone via Bluetooth and display key notifications like directions or calling an Uber directly in the wearer's field of view.

Google said North's technical expertise "will help as we continue to invest in our hardware efforts and ambient computing future".

North will join the Google team based in Kitchener-Waterloo, Canada.

North, a pioneer in human computer interfaces and smart glasses, has built a strong technology foundation.

After failing to impress people with the consumer edition of its $1500 Glass, Google last year brought the second edition of its eye-wearable device - Google Glass Enterprise Edition 2, with improved camera, USB-C type port and safety frames.

The first Google Glass was introduced with much fanfare in 2014.

At $1,500, it promised a new, bold era for information.

People, however, realised the device was not yet ready to be part of their lives. There were safety and health concerns. The built-in camera raised privacy and piracy issues too.

--IANS

na/